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WHAT GUIDES YOU?

We all at some point will and have questioned the meaning life. The content of the question maybe different, but the aim is the same. We all what to clarify the reason for our existence. We all want to prove the existence of a higher power. What is the purpose of life? For a long time I firmly believed there was a higher power and tried to convince others to believe as to did. The imperative to evangelize is strong if we are convinced of the exclusivity of our belief structure. Therein lies the problem. The conviction of exclusive attainment of insight often paves the path to dangerous attitudes and behaviors.

As I have gotten older and gotten more influenced by a non religious milieu I have come to the conclusion that the higher power is us. It is us that will create the future of mankind and it is us that have created the present. Our world is what we make of it and not a result of divine intervention. The mythical power of belief and prayer is deceptive and dangerous. If only we spent as much time delivering care and less on praying for that change. We have to deliver the change we deserve and expect. The power of belief to affect the physical world is not in doubt, neither is the fact that the claimed results are of biologic processes. The strength of the evidence is that belief is a powerful agent of chance, but itself is not the change agent.

Some suggest that there is nothing lost in believing, but I would suggest differently. Belief is wonderful as long as it does not detract from the facts. The loss of focus on the present and the fatalism of the religious is a consistent and persistent drag on society. Thankfully, we live in a country that for a long time has professed religion without allowing the religious to impose their will and fatalistic determinism on the rest of us. This escape has provided a fertile milieu for development. The dependence on evidence is and continues to be the basis of a properly functioning society. As noted in our current political debate the more religious the participants the less our leaders get done. The lack of productivity from the political class is a win for many believers, but only highlights the fatalism of their belief structure.

The troubling trend is that the religious and the professed have gained power and are attempting to reverse our gains. I hope we realize this troubling trend before it completely changes our country for the worse. I hope logic, reason, and evidence continue to guide us.